Fracking in West Clare

Builderfromhell

I have been researching the plans to use Fracking to extract gas from west Clare and found this video which might help to enlighten people who would be effected;

http://current.com/green/93572537_fracking-made-simple-animated-guide-to-shale-gas-drilling.htm

Jim Martin

and there's this trailer to the film 'Gasland':

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZe1AeH0Qz8

maryb26

Where exactly in west Clare is this proposed. Has a licence been issued and is planning permission required?

Duiske

Builderfromhell wrote: »

I have been researching the plans to use Fracking to extract gas from west Clare and found this video which might help to enlighten people who would be effected;

http://current.com/green/93572537_fracking-made-simple-animated-guide-to-shale-gas-drilling.htm

The whole practise of fracking needs to be looked at more, especially with regard to its effects on underground water sources, but the use of these type of videos, cartoon-esqe with kids voiceovers, to spin the "Green" side of the story is ridiculous.

Heres a video, a less emotive, grown-up one, that explains thing quite well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW_xJqPjE_I

redzerologhlen

There was a big thread in the farming forum a while back about fracking. Might be worth a read if your interested!

LINK

Jim Martin

There's a meeting tomorrow in the Temple Gate at 4pm for those who want to get involved, details from clarefrack@gmail.com.

Builderfromhell

Jim Martin wrote: »

There's a meeting tomorrow in the Temple Gate at 4pm for those who want to get involved, details from clarefrack@gmail.com.

Thanks for that, will try to get in.

CptSternn

http://news.yahoo.com/expert-wastewater-well-ohio-triggered-quakes-234501529.html

CLEVELAND (AP) — A northeast Ohio well used to dispose of wastewater from oil and gas drilling almost certainly caused a series of 11 minor quakes in the Youngstown area since last spring, a seismologist investigating the quakes said Monday.

Research is continuing on the now-shuttered injection well at Youngstown and seismic activity, but it might take a year for the wastewater-related rumblings in the earth to dissipate, said John Armbruster of Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Palisades, New York.

Brine wastewater dumped in wells comes from drilling operations, including the so-called fracking process to extract gas from underground shale that has been a source of concern among environmental groups and some property owners. Injection wells have also been suspected in quakes in Ashtabula in far northeast Ohio, and in Arkansas, Colorado, and Oklahoma, Armbruster said.

You can add earthquakes to the list of things fracking causes as well. Who would have though injecting toxic chemicals at speeds high enough to break rock deep into the earth might cause earthquakes.

User Friendly

Pat Kenny had the CEO from the company who are looking to carry out this fracking in Ireland on the show yesterday morning. i found it interesting,

http://www.rte.ie/radio/radioplayer/rteradioweb.html#!rii=9%3A3156795%3A133%3A03%2D01%2D2012%3A


fast forward to 1hr 13mins to hear the exchange

Builderfromhell

Thanks for that.
I'll have a listen tomorrow.

Jim Martin

Clare Fracking Concerned are giving a 10 minute presentation to the Clare Co. Co. monthly meeting next Monday at 17.50 hrs, the meeting is open to the public in the public viewing gallery of the Council Chamber and they (CFC) want as many people as possible to attend!

golden8

This is a cut and past from Loop Head Penisula facebook page

"A quick update on the fracking issue, as of this evening Clare County Council have not only voted unanimously in support of local councilor Gabriel Keating's (FG) motion to ban fracking in the county, it also passed a motion from Brian Meaney (GP) amending the county development plan to specifically include the ban on fracking...this is a first jn the country and importantly gives legislative teeth to ensure that the ban is upheld and is not just a symbolic gesture..power to the people....))

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Loop-Head-Peninsula-West-Clare/329088646162

angelfire9

Cllr. Cathal Crowe had it up on his facebook page this evening as well

Clare County Council to oppose fracking: At tonight's meeting Cllrs unanimously agreed to initiate a process that will prohibit fracking in the Clare County Development Plan. We are the first council in the country to have taken such a stance.

http://www.facebook.com/cathalcrowe

CptSternn

Fair play to the council.

Lets see if the ban holds or if national level politics come into play and trump them.

trazoo

Would be interesting to hear more clearcut facts about it. The info below is quite good but we received a leaflet in the door about it. A lot of subjective nonsense in it e.g 'MAY be harmful', 'MAY be subjected to intolerable noise', 'Property value MAY fall', 'COULD be at risk', groundwater supply MAY diminish', lifestyle MAY be adversely affected'. I DO live in West Clare and want to know what it WILL do. Had Corrib gasline people the same concerns and is this comparable to their situation?

Johnboy1951

trazoo wrote: »

Would be interesting to hear more clearcut facts about it. The info below is quite good but we received a leaflet in the door about it. A lot of subjective nonsense in it e.g 'MAY be harmful', 'MAY be subjected to intolerable noise', 'Property value MAY fall', 'COULD be at risk', groundwater supply MAY diminish', lifestyle MAY be adversely affected'. I DO live in West Clare and want to know what it WILL do. Had Corrib gasline people the same concerns and is this comparable to their situation?

Probably all of the above without the proper controls and oversight.

It is prudent not to move forward until all of the facts are published about controls and oversight.

CptSternn

I think everyone needs to watch the documentary Gasland and listen to first hand accounts from people who live in areas where this has happened. You don't get more information that listening to people who have lived through this exact senario.

It's also worth pointing out the oil companies constant use of terms like 'may do this' or 'might do this' is on par with cigarette companies saying cigarettes 'may cause cancer' or 'may cause birth defects'. There is overwhelming evidence to prove the case, they just use this language in obvious attempts to sway public opinion.

I say this because again, after watching the documentary and seeing dozens of people who got multi-million dollar settlements from the gas/oil company due to the horrible things fracking either did to their land or their own personal heath, it's safe to say companies are not paying out million dollar lawsuits, and thats lawsuits plural, because they think the behaviour which they have engaged in had nothing to do with these horrible things. They are paying people off to keep them quiet and even more so to pay them now before they can find even more things wrong which they could sue for.

The documentary only interviews a small number of people who went public. Records show many more have been effected and settled quietly out of court. Even more people will be suing in the future as like some of the families in the documentary they didn't realise anything was wrong until they got health problems and had their water tested to find all those chemicals in them and were able to trace them miles away to a fracking site that had penetrated the ground water and was making everyone in a ten mile radius die.

It's not the sort of thing you want to take chances with. It's not like once you poison all the ground water in an area you can just un-do that. These people have now signed contracts with the gas/oil company who bring in trucks daily for entire areas because the water is contaminated and you can't drink it EVER AGAIN. The fact the oil/gas companies are shipping in water daily for areas where they frack because of issues like this should have people paying attention.

brock92

I watched the documentary Gasland last night... Its hard to believe that Fracking is allowed to be carried out at all. Its frightening stuff.

Builderfromhell

Very impressed by Clare County Councils decision to ban fracking and amend the County development plan to ensure this environmentally degrading system of mining is not used.

I am all for getting gas or any other valuable resource out of the ground but all the evidence on fracking confirms that it is very dangerous and has resulted in seriously polluted ground water in the USA and Canada. We should wait until a more environmentally friendly system of mining has been developed.

Run_to_da_hills

I only heard about this well over a year ago from my ex although its only relativly recently that I have shown an interest and concern about it.

Fair play to the CCC for banning this and I hope the rest of the countries county councils follow. People need to be educated about this scourge.

Who wants €300 to €400 bn worth of natural gas extracted from our land if the consequences of it is turning our country into a a toxic wasteland. You could Kiss good bye to Ballygowen, Tipperary, Irish Spring Water not to mention ordinary tap water.

The subject is also discussed at length in P.IE and in the Politics forum.

Check out the movie Gaslands, available on DVD or big screen, it will open your eyes

Auldloon

Where was this proposed fracking due to take place exactly? On land or hundreds of miles out at sea?

CptSternn

Chuileog wrote: »

Where was this proposed fracking due to take place exactly? On land or hundreds of miles out at sea?

The Burren.

Run_to_da_hills

Chuileog wrote: »

Where was this proposed fracking due to take place exactly? On land or hundreds of miles out at sea?

Letterfrack to be precice.

User Friendly

CptSternn wrote: »

The Burren.

:D

minnow

Chuileog wrote: »

Where was this proposed fracking due to take place exactly? On land or hundreds of miles out at sea?

In Clare the recent press centres on an exploration licence given to a company Enegi Oil for south west Clare (approx from Doonbeg down to Loop Head). They are the very early stages of re-evaluating old data to see if it is worth drilling trial wells. More info at their website here.

It is worth noting that fracking has been done for 50 years all over the world, and is still done in environmentally conscious countries like Germany and Holland for oil & gas developments. The recent negative press centres around poor practices by some operators in the USA in developing shallower shale gas fields in which water pollution etc has taken place. Unfortunately, the current over-reaction is based on a lot of hearsay and scare tactics and not based on objective facts about a long history of fracking.

As someone with an indirect connection with the oil & gas industry, I am disappointed about the bad press and lack of objective facts in the fracking debate.

minnow

CptSternn wrote: »

The Burren.

As stated on another thread, this is not true and propaganda. Providence have a field called "Burren" which is a few hundred kms off the coast directly west from Clare.

Please show one link showing that there is any intention to drill/refine/frac in the Burren.

User Friendly

minnow wrote: »

In Clare the recent press centres on an exploration licence given to a company Enegi Oil for south west Clare (approx from Doonbeg down to Loop Head). They are the very early stages of re-evaluating old data to see if it is worth drilling trial wells.

It is worth noting that fracking has been done for 50 years all over the world, and is still done in environmentally conscious countries like Germany and Holland for oil & gas developments. The recent negative press centres around poor practices by some operators in the USA in developing shallower shale gas fields in which water pollution etc has taken place. Unfortunately, the current over-reaction is based on a lot of hearsay and scare tactics and not based on objective facts about a long history of fracking.

As someone with an indirect connection with the oil & gas industry, I am disappointed about the bad press and lack of objective facts in the fracking debate.

I'll give you one good reason fracking shouldnt take place in Clare,we dont know enough about its long term effects,its that simple really.

Would you consider France to be environmentally friendly country? they have banned it,probably because they too dont know enough about its long term effects.

Run_to_da_hills

User Friendly wrote: »

I'll give you one good reason fracking shouldnt take place in Clare,we dont know enough about its long term effects,its that simple really.

Would you consider France to be environmentally friendly country? they have banned it,probably because they too dont know enough about its long term effects.

The ironic thing about France is that it bans these operations yet it has probably the highest number per capita of nuke stations than any other country in the world including Japan.

minnow

Another general question worth asking is whether we want a bunch of gombeen councillors basically attempting to override existing national legislation for what I can only imagine are populist motives, rather than a body such as the EPA looking at the real issues and regulating the practice?

Imagine what uproar there would be if they tried to ban septic tanks in Clare...

Builderfromhell

minnow wrote: »

Another general question worth asking is whether we want a bunch of gombeen councillors basically attempting to override existing national legislation for what I can only imagine are populist motives, rather than a body such as the EPA looking at the real issues and regulating the practice?

Imagine what uproar there would be if they tried to ban septic tanks in Clare...

I would be happy for the EPA to investigate hydraulic fracking and give an independent objective report on it.
Then we could all have an informed opinion of it.

Keano

Sligo county council have also now banned the practice

minnow

Builderfromhell wrote: »

I would be happy for the EPA to investigate hydraulic fracking and give an independent objective report on it.
Then we could all have an informed opinion of it.

Then you'll be glad to know to that are doing it at the moment, see here.

Builderfromhell

I hear the IFA discussed fracking at their recent meeting in Ennis and have unanimously agreed that it should be banned.

WakeyTyke

As someone who lives, works, cycles and walks in the proposed fracking area of west Clare I personally can see NO justifiable reason to have OUR environment desecrated by profit-chasing oil and gas companies.:(

Can someone please explain to me how the lives of the people of west Clare will benefit if this was to be allowed?

Lady Chatterton

I came across this event in "Clare Focus" this morning, it might be of interest to some people on this thread.

‘Fracking’: Film & Information evening


There will be a screening of ‘Gasland’, a film about ‘fracking’ in Fanny O’Dea’s, Lissycasey on Thursday, January 26th at 8pm.

‘Fracking’ is a method of extracting gas by drilling with large amounts of water& approx. 430 chemicals, 25 of which are listed carcinogens. An English company Enegi Oil, is currently examining the possibility of fracking in Clare. Being a new technology, proper safety standards have not yet been put in place and its' negative effects on our water system, air and landscape are of grave concern. The fears and controversy surrounding this process are such that it has been banned in France, parts of Germany and New York state.


The film will be followed by a short questions and answers. The event is organised by Clare Fracking Concerned.

http://www.clarefocus.ie/index.php/component/option,com_jcalpro/Itemid,70/extmode,view/extid,9008/

Builderfromhell

The Gasland documentary followed by a talk is schedules as follows;


Kilmihil Community Centre, Wednesday, Jan 18th at 8pm
Kildysart Community Centre, Friday, Jan 20th at 8pm
Fanny O’Deas pub, Lissycasey, Thursday, Jan 26th at 8pm
Ennistymon, Courthouse Gallery, Friday, Jan 27th at 8pm.

CptSternn

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/01/house-republicans-order-j_n_1246971.html?1328114727&ref=fb&src=sp&comm_ref=false#sb=941841,b=facebook

WASHINGTON -- In a stunning break with First Amendment policy on Capitol Hill, House Republicans directed Capitol Hill police to detain a highly regarded documentary crew that was attempting to film a Wednesday hearing on a controversial natural gas procurement practice. Republicans also denied the entrance of a credentialed ABC News news team that was attempting to film the event.

Josh Fox, director of the Academy Award-nominated documentary "Gasland" was taken into custody by Capitol Hill police this morning, along with his crew, after Republicans objected to their presence, according to Democratic sources present at the hearing.

CptSternn

Run_to_da_hills

The ordinary people of Lietrim are about to get poisoned for all the mistakes of greedy property developers, bankers and incompetent Fianna Fail Government.

User Friendly

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

The ordinary people of Lietrim are about to get poisoned for all the mistakes of greedy property developers, bankers and incompetent Fianna Fail Government.

And you can chalk that down!

Builderfromhell

Polluted groundwater in Fermanagh/Leitrim would leech into the Shannon and thereby pollute the whole shannon basin.
The consequences being; polluted drinking water all along the west coast and a devastated fishing/tourism industry.

Kristopherus

W hat a great thread:rolleyes: There's no doubt but that the Fear Factor is going to be spread far & wide.:rolleyes:

User Friendly

Kristopherus wrote: »

W hat a great thread:rolleyes: There's no doubt but that the Fear Factor is going to be spread far & wide.:rolleyes:

what do you mean Kris? are you disappointed that more posters havent contributed?

Run_to_da_hills

Kristopherus wrote: »

W hat a great thread:rolleyes: There's no doubt but that the Fear Factor is going to be spread far & wide.:rolleyes:

So you are another one of those gullible individuals that believes that Tamboran Resources will use 100% holy water in the fracking process.

rainbowdash

Where were all these NIMBY's when the super polluter that is moneypoint was being built?

CptSternn

rainbowdash wrote: »

Where were all these NIMBY's when the super polluter that is moneypoint was being built?

That was in the 70s-80s. Years before we had things like the Internet and Boards.ie. Information now spreads far and fast. We have access to things like the documentary Gasland (see the trailer above) and can actually get responses from people who have been through this process before.

It's no longer a case of blindly putting your faith in some multi-national global corporation and hope they help the locality instead of destroying it for profit, we can actually find out what they have been up to before, gauge the process they intend to use, and research the previous history of the whole process without having to leave the comforts of our own sitting room.

People today are more tuned in than ever before and the dodgy stuff companies used to get away with in the past won't fly any more.

Modern technology, eh?

Johnboy1951

rainbowdash wrote: »

Where were all these NIMBY's when the super polluter that is moneypoint was being built?

Protesting about the building of a nuclear power station in Wexford maybe

Lady Chatterton

Pat Kenny's Frontline Programme will be doing an item on "Fracking" tonight. (RTE1 Monday @ 9:35pm).

Builderfromhell

Watched Frontline last night and found it reasonably informative. hought the guy from Friends of the Earth and the Doctor from Cavan were good.
Pat Rabbite's point about waiting for the EPA report makes sense.

However, I did read somewhere that the EPA report is being done by Aberdeen Univeristy which is funded by the Gas industry.

Palmach

Builderfromhell wrote: »

Watched Frontline last night and found it reasonably informative. hought the guy from Friends of the Earth and the Doctor from Cavan were good.
Pat Rabbite's point about waiting for the EPA report makes sense.

However, I did read somewhere that the EPA report is being done by Aberdeen Univeristy which is funded by the Gas industry.

Not true. It receives a lot of funding as it is considered a leading University in energy studies.

wellboytoo

Amazing, read this whole thread, very thin on facts and full of conjecture.